Secrets and Lies
by WrensNest
Summary: While on a quest, Merlin and Arthur's friendship is tested when secrets are revealed.
1. Chapter 1

It was deathly quiet in the woods this time of night, and Merlin would gladly admit that the silence was freaking him out a little. In fact, this would have to be at least the fifth time this night that he has mentioned it.

'Don't be such a girl, Merlin. There are no monsters in the woods, remember?'

'But- but Arthur, something isn't _right_! I'm telling you, something is out there watching us!'

Arthur stopped in his tracks, spinning around to look at Merlin with an annoyed look on his face.

'If you're so afraid, Merlin, go back.'

Merlin looked into Arthur's eyes, hypnotised by the mix of blue and green, and he knew that he could never leave Arthur out in these woods alone, especially not with something out there, hunting them down.

'No. I'm not leaving you.' Merlin says, quietly, and Arthur nods.

'Good.' He says. 'Now, hurry up!'

By the time Merlin looks back up, Arthur is already a way ahead of him, walking faster than he was before.

'Wai- Arthur!' Merlin calls out, rushing to catch up with the Prince.

The sun had been gone for almost two hours now, the air had grown cooler and there were no longer birds tweeting. The dark cave they had come upon seemed evil, and Merlin certainly had no intention of walking into it any time soon, but Arthur didn't seem put-off by the smell of burning or the old, dead trees that blocked the entrance. Merlin reached out, gripping the prince's arm. Arthur turned around, reluctant to wait any longer.

'What, Merlin? He asked, no less irritated than before.

'Are you sure this is a good idea?'

'No. But I'm going anyway!' Arthur replied, shaking off Merlin's hand.

'Just think about this, Arthur! This place has been untouched for centuries, it's a sacred ground! Do you really thin-'

'Shut up, Merlin.' Arthur retorted, squeezing through a gap in the sea of trees that lay ahead.

Arthur looked into the cave, hypnotised by the darkness, and scared by the eerie silence. A sense of dread suddenly washed over him, and he stumbled backwards a few steps, almost knocking into Merlin. Spinning around, Arthur narrowed his eyes, while Merlin took in the expression on his face.

'What, Arthur, what's wrong?' Merlin asked, taking a step forward.

'Nothing's wrong, why would anything be wrong? I'm fine.' Arthur spat out quickly, trying to convince himself more that Merlin. He could feel his heart beating through his chest, his breathing sounded unbelievably loud. Arthur sighed and looked around him, frowning.

'H-how do we get out of here?' he asked, moving towards a cluster of trees and trying to see through them. It was useless, he could see nothing but thorns and leaves and branches linking together, stopping him from leaving. Dropping his sword to the ground, Arthur turned and walked to the other side of the clearing, and then the other.

'Damnit!' he exclaimed, angrily, leaning against one of the trees.

'Arthur, calm down. We got in, there's obviously a way to get out.'

'Oh, _is_ there! Well, where is it Merlin?!' Arthur yelled, sliding to the ground and kicking his legs out in front of him. Merlin opened his mouth to reply, and abruptly closed it again as he looked around.

Arthur had a point. Trees surrounded them, and as far as Merlin could see, there were no gaps between them. Merlin could no longer see the way out, and by the look on Arthur's face, it seemed they would have to spend the night here. Merlin walked over to Arthur and sat down next to him.

'It could be worse.' He offered, trying to lighten the situation.

'How?'

'Well… we could be in _there_.' Merlin said, pointing towards the cave.


	2. Chapter 2

'You had to open your big mouth.' Arthur said, angrily, as he took another step into the cave. Merlin walked along side him, trying to feel his way along the wall. Outside, thunder rumbled and lightning crashed, and the sound of rain beating against the roof of the cave kept getting louder.

'It's not my fault it rained, Arthur.' Merlin trips over a rock and grips onto Arthur's shoulder to steady himself.

'If _you_ hadn't mentioned-'

'You need to get some sleep, you're always grumpy when you're tired.' Merlin states, matter-of-factly.

'Wha-'

'We have to find somewhere to sleep for the night, Arthur, and-'

'Well, there is no way I'm sleeping in this cave. So we'll just have to find somewhere else!' Arthur folded his arms across his chest and hugged himself tightly. All around him, he could hear rats squeaking and water dripping, and not being able to see what was making those noises was scaring him a little.

Merlin glanced at Arthur and smiled.

'Don't tell me you're scared.' He mocked.

'Don't be stupid, I don't get scared.' Arthur lied. Of course he got scared, he was scared of many things. Spiders, heights. But the dark? He had never been afraid of the dark, and he certainly didn't want to be now that he was in the darkest, coldest cave had ever been in. The only thing that would make this worse would be being alone, he thought, momentarily glad that Merlin was with him. Looking at his man servant, Arthur smiled.

'What?' he asked, as he caught Merlin staring back.

'Oh, nothing. Just thinking, sire.' Merlin replied, feeling the heat rushing to his cheeks. It wasn't the first time he had been caught gazing at Arthur, lost in the man's eyes. But it was certainly the first time that Arthur himself had caught him. The two men looked at each other, smiling, as if sharing an unsaid joke.

As they walked, Merlin caught his foot in a crack in the ground. Throwing his arms out in front of him, he landed with a thud on the ground, as the sound of Arthur's laughter echoed around him. Getting to his knees, he scowled up at Arthur, then examined his hands, which were now covered in gravel and small stones. Sighing, Merlin got to his feet, wincing as a bolt of pain ran through his knee.Bending his leg, he fell against Arthur, who promptly threw and arm around his waist to steady him. Merlin held his breath, unsure of the feeling that had instantly appeared in his stomach.

'What, what is it? Arthur asked, a hint of concern in his voice.

'Nothing,' Merlin lied. 'J-just a cut, that's all.'

'Oh,' Arthur replied, swiftly removing his arm from around Merlin's waist.

Merlin sighed. He hadn't expected Arthur's arm to slide around his waist, but he had certainly enjoyed the feeling, and he would have liked it to have stayed there for a little while longer. Arthur certainly wasn't the kind of man to show that he cares, not to Merlin anyway.

Arthur looked back at the opening of the cave, wondering if he should chance getting a cold rather than keep walking through this cave. They had no source of light, except for the rare flash of lightning that would light up the cave for a mere second. Lifting a hand to his cheek, he leaned against the wall, tired and cold and very, very hungry. How long had they been gone? How many hours had it been since they had left Camelot?

Sorry it's not the longest, but I wanted to get it posted before I forget to. Thanks for reading


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